During a week long design sprint called SCAD Startup, we were asked “where do we go from here”? My team and I made an addition to that question…
“Where do we go from here if they’re not here?”
They being the hundreds of thousand of international students looking to create a better life for themselves through working in the United States. Tau ended up placing 3rd out of 93 teams and 300+ students.
Applying for a work visa is a long and daunting task with many opportunities for mistakes to happen. Thousands of people who apply each year are revoked for the simplest of errors.
Tau directly translates to “for you” in Lithuanian, a tribute to our teammate, Reda, who is an international student herself. Tau guides international students through the work visa application process, auto filling and explaining the complex and detail oriented forms and regulations as you go.
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Determining where the applicant stands in the application process is crucial in maximizing efficiency and simplicity.
Once signed in, the user is greeted with a questionnaire that is rewarding, simple, and efficient in gathering the necessary data for determining next steps.
Once the questionnaire is complete, visa eligibility is determined. Basic information regarding the visa is given such as it’s duration, requirements, and processing time.
Afterwards, the user is introduced to the requirements of applying for their respective visa, as well as the Task Manager that will lead them through fulfilling those tasks.
Simply put, this app is made for you, the international student thats going through the frustrating process of immigrating to a new country.
From the home page that includes upcoming urgent tasks, to scanning in your documents, to keep them organized and safe, to the beautifully designed pathway in the Task Management system. TAU will be right by your side along the way, helping you successfully apply for a work visa.
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After researching and understanding the entire application process from end to end, we built a User Flow that best fit the needs of a user who is applying for the first time.
Given the short time frame, low fidelity wireframes helped us visualize the user flow to better communicate our plan during our three minute pitch to the judges.
The fact of the matter is, foreign workers coming in to the United States benefit the economy and population in almost every way.
Along with the statistics to the right, firms with higher diversity see a 40% increase in market share value and are 70% more likely to report that their firm has captured a new market.
Nonetheless, the difficulty of applying and being accepted for a work visa in the United States has yet to improve. Applicants are constantly rejected for the slightest of errors, some even avoiding applying due to the high stress levels and the complexity of the process.
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